ABOUT DR ORLANDO MARDNER
(Author • Security Executive • Thought Leader • Reform Strategist)
Dr Orlando Mardner is a forward-leaning security executive, academic practitioner, and organisational reform strategist operating across the intersection of physical security, risk intelligence, human factors, and professionalisation policy. His career spans frontline operations, high-net-worth protection, international risk consulting, and systems design for some of the most complex environments in the UK and overseas.
He is the architect behind the Security Science Professionalisation Matrix (SSPM) — the first globally scalable framework designed to transform private security from an unstructured occupation into a regulated, standards-driven profession. His work integrates sector competence, licensing, CPD, ethics, and learning systems, giving governments, training bodies, and employers a clear blueprint for creating credible workforce pipelines.
Across his portfolio, Dr Mardner works at the convergence point of four critical domains shaping modern security delivery:
• Physical Security — operational protection, risk mitigation, and frontline readiness.
• Cybersecurity — digital resilience, data protection, and integrated controls.
• Personnel Security — screening, governance, behavioural performance, and insider-risk prevention.
• Intelligence & OSINT — decision-support, situational awareness, and human terrain analysis.
This four-pillar model underpins his broader thinking on next-generation security ecosystems and informs his upcoming book When Walls Go Digital, a strategic blueprint for the future of converged risk.
Dr Mardner is recognised for his unapologetically direct thinking. He challenges legacy assumptions, calls out weak governance, and pushes for systems that actually work — practical before political, evidence-driven before cosmetic.
He is the founder of Synterna Group Holdings, overseeing:
• Synterna Security — operational deployment across multiple UK sectors
• Synterna FM Services — facilities, cleaning, and health & safety delivery
• Synterna Risk Management — high-end executive protection, security intelligence, and investigations
• PSA Global Academy — a global training and certification provider aligned to the SSPM
As an author, he has developed more than 40 titles across security, leadership, human behaviour, and personal development. His flagship series — including the Security Profession Series, The Protector’s Way, and the Mental Health in Private Security Trilogy — blends real-world insight with academic discipline, tackling industry issues most leaders prefer to ignore.
Dr Mardner also serves as a national representative within the Security Industry Federation (SIF), leading on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion for Black and minority professionals across the UK private security industry. His mandate is clear: create fair pathways, elevate competence, and open doors for talent too often overlooked.
With postgraduate degrees in Security Management, International Security, and Crisis Leadership — and holding titles including Knight Commander and Freeman of the City of London — he brings an unusual combination of operational credibility, academic rigour, and strategic governance capability.
Today, Dr Mardner’s work orbits one unifying mission: build a modern, ethical, globally respected private security profession — and equip people at every level with the tools, standards, and confidence to rise.